


Snowstorms in Ballonlea

by PercivalFox



Category: Pocket Monsters: Sword & Shield | Pokemon Sword & Shield Versions
Genre: Aged Up, Ballonlea, Cuddling, F/M, Fluff, Slow Paced, Snow, Spoilers, a little bit of canon divergence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-11
Updated: 2019-12-11
Packaged: 2021-02-25 21:07:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,382
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21751972
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PercivalFox/pseuds/PercivalFox
Summary: Ballonlea is covered in snow and in the midst of a blizzard, and Bede manages to get a surprise visitor.
Relationships: Beet | Bede/Yuuri | Gloria
Comments: 8
Kudos: 259





	Snowstorms in Ballonlea

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fic ever so I apologize if it’s not all that good. Love this ship it’s absolutely adorable lol

Anyone in the region would recognize the town of Ballonlea. The hidden grotto deep within the forest, said to be one of the most beautiful sights in all of Galar. Though it’s beauty remained, it was an entirely different sight today compared to what the town has been known for.

Flurries of snow dance around the air with weightlessness, only to be picked up by frigid winds the next moment. It was a sight many of the town had yet to experience. This being the case for Bede, as he had been woken up from the unexpected chill of the air. Seeing the pure white landscape from his window caused more confusion than glee. He had resided in the fey village for quite some time now, but never had to worry about the temperatures of Circhester invading it. A small chuckle escaped him as he observed the empty streets, footprints in the snow few and far between, quickly becoming invisible from the accumulating sleet. “Like I’m going to let a little weather stop me.” 

And it did.

After bundling in his magenta coat and walking to the gym for the daily round of challengers, he was met with locked doors and silence. A note hanging haphazardly on the door from the inside, stating the Ballonlea gym would be closed for the day. Before even reading the message he recognized Opal’s handwriting. The gym leader rolled his eyes to himself while in thought. ‘That’s all it takes to cancel any matches? The new challengers must have been weaker than I thought.’ He turned heel and headed back to his house, the snow crunching beneath his boots echoing as the only sound among the streets. 

Bede arrived back home relatively quick, the house was only a little ways away from the gym after all. During his training to become gym leader, he was surprised when Opal offered him the dwelling. She stated that the town had so few people and so many abandoned areas, there wouldn’t be a reason for him to not take one as his own. It wasn’t anything lavish- a small bedroom above and a single room that’s been divided on ground level, built like most other places in Ballonlea, save for a few pokemon beds-one containing his Sylveon, peacefully asleep-and a semi-abandoned fireplace. Bede stared off into space as he put his coat back, thinking of what could be done today in place of his battle routine. He already knew none of his team would be all that grateful should he attempt training in the forest at these temperatures. Even beyond that for some reason his hatterene has been acting up lately. He’s noticed that occasionally the creature will ignore his commands in combat, and has even run off once or twice when he was camping. These occurrences don’t happen all that often though. He thinks back to the last few times he’s had any issue with his partner pokemon. There shouldn’t have been any reason to cause hostility, the only thing he could think of was every time it happened he was around-

Knock knock

Bede blinked twice, expression blanking for a moment as he was torn from his previous train of thought. Was that the door?...no, there’s no way. The blizzard was rough, even for him, and when outside he saw no one amongst the streets aside from himself. He turned his back once more on the threshold, only to hear three more knocks, this time more harsh and audible. Out of the corner of his eye he saw sylveon rouse from their sleep, only to look out the window and perk their ears. A few happy chirps came from the small pink creature as it stared out the glass pane. Bede took that as a final confirmation, the door giving a distinct click as it opened. The gym leader felt himself freeze on the spot, first physically from the brutal wind brushing past, and then mentally as he saw who stood beyond the threshold.

Gloria stood shivering, snow dusted on her bonnet and hair. He could hear the small clicking sounds of her teeth chattering. He could only assume his expression mirrored his bewilderment. Eyes meeting each other as the champion spoke up

“H-hi Bede”. She sounded so casual for looking as if she were seconds away from freezing. A soft smile forming as she addressed her rival.

“Hi?” Bede hadn’t meant for it to come out as a question, but he still hadn’t managed to wrap his head around the situation. With all the questions rapidly forming in his mind the last thing he was thinking of was pleasantries. “What exactly are you even doing here?” 

The trainer laughed a bit, mostly towards herself but he could almost hear a tinge of nervousness. “Maybe t-that can b-be answered when I’m not ankle deep in s-snow?” Bede would be lying to himself if he said he didn’t enjoy their occasional banter on some level, but she had a good point. He stepped to the side of the doorway, a slight blush of embarrassment forming along his cheeks for not realizing the situation himself. 

The quick sound of stomping was heard throughout the home as Gloria attempted to get all the snow off her boots with a few kicks. The gym leader quickly shut the door once she was inside, attempting to stop the cold air from rushing in as soon as possible. He turned to face the visitor, only to notice how badly the cold had affected her. Her cheeks were a bright pinkish-red, and when she moved to set down her bag he saw the slightest touch of blue along her hands. Before he could coherently form a sentence her blurted out unprocessed thoughts. 

“Are you okay?!” He bit his tongue afterwards for sounding so forceful, awkwardness causing a bloom of warmth around his neck. Gloria gave him a curious look at first, but once she noticed his gaze towards the climate bitten areas of her skin she laughed a bit, holding them together to create warmth between her palms. “Don’t worry, I’ll be fine as soon as I warm up a bit.” Her expression morphed to slight embarrassment, eyes shifting to the ground. “I hadn’t expected the forest to be so cold.”

This statement brought Bede back to his original thought from when she had first arrived, however he decided to pause the onslaught of questions until the visitor before him was at the very least not shaking where she stood. 

Bede wasn’t entirely sure how to handle the situation, however he was partially relieved to see Gloria deciding to do so herself. The champion had walked to the side of the house made more to be a living room and sat on the sofa, knees curling up to keep her body’s warmth from escaping.

“Do you just make yourself at home wherever you go, or is it just something to spite me?” Bede had never been one to joke around, but the jab was aimed to lighten the mood from the previous talk of freezing, or maybe to eliminate any awkward silence between the two. He turns on the stove to start a kettle for tea, avoiding her gaze as her head turns to try and meet his eyes. “If I said just to spite you would you throw me out?” She asked, grin forming as the chatter of her teeth faded away from warmth. “No, I’d rather not be blamed for killing the champion, but thank you for the offer.” Gloria saw the small smirk forming as the gym leader spoke. When she had started her adventure years ago she saw it as a beam of overconfidence and mockery. After seeing her rival’s growth,it became more akin to a comfort, the sight creating a wellspring of warmth within her. 

Her train of thought was shifted as she saw a small flash of pink to her side, turning her head to see the sylveon had jumped up onto the couch, chirping happily to see company. Gloria stifled a giggle, watching the excitement radiating from the pink creature. She held out a hand to scratch the pokemon behind its ears, only for sylveon to jump away from the contact, fur standing on end as it shivered. It was at this point Gloria realized how cold she really was. The sylveon jumped down and made its way to the fireplace, only to begin pawing at it, chirping to try and get their trainer’s attention. 

Bede turned his head as he finished pouring two cups of tea, seeing the creature at the fireplace. He mentally agreed and thanked his pokemon for pointing out the obvious as his brain was hyperfocusing into a short circuit . When moving past, he placed the cup on the table in front of the girl, who immediately held it and partially melted at the feeling of warmth, a soft smile on her face as she snuggled into a blanket around her.

Only once Bede was crouched grabbing logs of wood from the basket next to the hearth was went the sylveon happily jumped back into its bed, circling a few times before looking blissfully asleep once more. Bede had only used the fireplace a handful of times, normally if one of his pokemon got frozen in a match, so it takes him just a bit to set everything up. Once the kindling was placed, the audible click of a lighter was heard as the flames rose to life.

Bede moved to sit next to the champion, still not entirely sure of his own thoughts or what to question first, but beyond that he questioned why he could feel the steady rise of his heartbeat from such a small gesture. His gaze was directed towards Gloria, avoiding eye contact. “So if I may” her attention being brought back to the gym leader after realizing she had mentally melted into a puddle for a few moments. “Why exactly were you waltzing through a snowstorm in a remote forest?” His tone sounded a usual mix of sarcasm and seriousness. Gloria perked up as if remembering something, a small light in her eyes. 

“Oh! Right, I offered to help Sonia and Hop with some research.” Gloria turned, directing her attention to the forest beyond the window. “They were talking about a hypothesis that the glowing mushrooms in the forest may have an effect of evolutions for the pokemon that live there...or something like that..” She faltered, not entirely sure if the lie was believable enough. Judging by the slight eyebrow raise she got from the gym leader she took that as a no. A blush rose to her face. “Okay fine- I wanted to come say hi and see how you were doing and I didn’t think it’d be snowing sideways until I got here.” She realized how much more idiotic that sounded out loud compared to in her head. She didn’t know why she always felt compelled to be around the fairy user so often, and moments she couldn’t, she would still have thoughts drift to him. Bede had a surprised look after hearing the confession, purple irises smaller than normal. 

Unknown to her, a part of Bede felt extremely relieved to know he wasn’t alone when it came to the compulsions to see a certain someone. That part of him knew he enjoyed simply spending time with the champion, though his conscious mind would rather not acknowledge it, let alone speak about it. He didn’t know how to respond, noticing her still shaking, he stood up, avoiding the obvious subject. “Here, I’ll grab another blanket-“. As he moved to leave the room, Gloria held her arms out, blanket hanging off each arm. “Or we could snuggle” the shy squeak of a voice that felt out of character for the girl was heard, and Bede froze in place. Mind going from consistent thought to a flatline beep of ‘uhhh…..’ within seconds. He looked at Gloria, blush obvious when making eye contact. He didn’t trust himself to say anything, and instead slowly approached and took a seat next to her, only for her to hug him, covering them both in the plush of the quilt. 

Bede is still easily shocked from the touch alone. He stays perfectly still for a few minutes, unable to even form a thought within the mush he would call his brain right now. Gloria seems content with their current state, as he looks down to notice the smile ghosting her lips, eyes shut with the occasional flutter of a blink. He felt as if his face was on fire, and he swears it must have been some sort of fever, as in his delirium he wraps an arm around Gloria’s waist, pulling her closer as he hears a small gasp from the girl, head now resting on his shoulder. Neither of them dare speak a word, but rather focus on the warmth of their embrace and their own emotions. Minutes pass and all he can think about is her. Her smile, her bright personality, her strength and will… his mind wanders off on the subject like a silent prayer to her. 

It’s at that moment realization finally slams into him like a truck, eyes shot open as his pulse speeds to that of a bolthund. 

He likes her…

He really likes her..

The phrase repeating itself in his head like a mantra. He feels the excitement and panic of it each time it’s repeated. And for a moment, in between the focus, a glimmer of excitement slips through.

‘’...maybe she feels the same way”

Bede turns to the girl on his shoulder, nervousness threatening to appear in his voice as he breathed. “Hey Gloria…?” A few moments past, no response. As his gaze fell on her he noticed her quiet, slowed breathing, realizing she had fallen asleep cuddled up to him. Even if it’s not now, he doesn’t mind. That’s a conversation he decided future him can handle, as for now, he rests next to her, reveling in the touch she’s given him. For once, the gym leader had a genuine smile on his face, as he attempted to rest as well 

“That’s ok… it can wait another day.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading!


End file.
